Recently, there have been reports about Gastric Band Hypnosis.  Basically, a hypnotherapist recreates a gastric band operation on a patient while under hypnosis and when they awake they believe that they have actually had the procedure.  Some hypnotherapists go to great lengths to recreate an actual operation scenario, including placing the patient in a hospital gown and mimicking the operating room setting.  I find it flattering that the success of the gastric band has lead to this “pretend” band procedure.  The description of the procedure that I read actually takes longer than the 20-30 minutes it takes to perform a real band procedure.  In my professional opinion, nothing can compare to the long term success of the real gastric band.  For now, Dr. Atkinson and I will continue only performing real gastric band procedures.

– Dr. Darren Soong